–Olusegun Osunkeye

MENTORING WILL SHORTEN YOUR JOURNEY TO THE TOP

LESSON 1 CAREER Be professional, develop competence on the job

If you truly want to get to the top of your career, it is imperative that you develop competence on the job. Without being seen to be competent by those below and above you, you may face some ridicule at some point and you may not get to the top of the corporate ladder. When I returned to Nigeria in 1967 after my professional accountancy qualification in England, I started with UAC and was posted to Lipton (blenders of Coffee. Tea) based in Apapa. The people I met on ground were just clerks and were far older than I was. On my second day, (I had an office to myself) and I was barely settling down when this elderly senior Accounts Clerk walked into my office; He said “Excuse me sir, it is time to calculate the Variances, and it is done by the Accountant.” I knew what books to ask for and he went to get them. He brought the books and stood there in front of me with his hands behind him, which I had thought was a mark of courtesy and respect. After 10 to 15 minutes, I gave the results to him and he brought his hands forward with a sheet of paper bearing the answers there. He compared my figures with his and said, “Yes, you are correct. We just wanted to test you”. That is competence and knowledge. Imagine if I didn’t know?

You need to remain focused on your career goal

Many people cut their career journey to the top short by dabbling into so many things instead of focusing on their goals. When I joined Nestle (the Food Specialities) in 1972 - the same building that is home to Nestle in Ilupeju was originally a warehouse. Within a year the owners came to me and offered it to me to buy. I replied that I wanted to be a professional accountant and wanted to exercise my professional knowledge and so on. Apart from the fact that I couldn’t think of how to get the money to buy it, I had made up my mind even at that time what I wanted to be. I wanted to be a captain of industry. So they left me, came back and offered it to us as a company and we had a policy that “we are not in the property business” and that was the answer I gave. If I had taken the offer, maybe I would have had to do something on the side to get it and that would have got me distracted.

You need to guide against conflict of interest

This is where many CEOs miss it. When you are in a position of authority, you need to guide against everything that can weaken that authority in any form. When I joined Nestle, to avoid conflict of interest, I made two important decisions upfront: One, I told my wife from day one that she would not sell any product that Nestle is selling. Not only that, she would not sell any product that is competing with Nestle products. That still stands till today. Secondly, when I became an executive director of the company, I also said no member of my family would be employed at Nestle. I paid dearly for that decision. I would help members of my family find work elsewhere but not in Nestle. No sooner had I joined, in 1973/74, than the company wanted to hire medical delegates and a cousin of mine with the same surname was shortlisted by the MD on merit but I insisted she would not be employed based on the earlier principle. The MD could not understand and tried to persuade me to allow them employ her but I stood my ground. Eventually the MD saw my point. My relationship with my cousin nosedived and even over forty years later, our relationship has not improved much even when we meet at family settings. If you have principles, be prepared to pay a price.

Don’t behave as heir apparent

This is my counsel to people , from experience; no matter how good you think you are on the job, don’t behave as if the top position belongs to you. At a point in my career, I was promised that after returning from training abroad, I would be made the managing director. My mind was fixed on that and I prepared very well for the exalted position. To my surprise and anger, however, when I returned, I was offered the position of the deputy managing director. I was infuriated and was considering a number of options. All the explanations they gave did not enter my ears. They were disappointed with my reaction, and looking back, I really shouldn’t have reacted the way I did. But then I decided to seek the counsel of one of my mentors, Dr. Omolayole. Here was the advice he gave me: “he who will be King cannot make himself King, just do your work, do not behave as heir apparent, be loyal to your company and be dedicated. The king makers are those who will write your appraisal”. I took that golden advice to heart, even though I had to wait another 10 years to 1991 to became the MD/CEO of Nestle Nigeria Plc. The patience paid off. I knew all facets of the business including the corporate culture and work ethics of the Nestle Group, and as the most senior Nigerian, I helped to inculcate the tenets down the line.

LESSON 2 RELATIONSHIP Have Mentors, Mentor Others

Without the influence and help of the mentors God brought my way, my journey to the top would have been slow or even truncated. The path to the top was prone to many errors but through timely and regular counsels from my mentors, I was able to navigate through. I have been blessed with great mentors like Chief Akintola Williams, Chief Omolayole, the late chief Justice Fatai Williams and a few others. A ready example I can give of the effect of a good mentor was when I was to send my children abroad for their education, I didn’t have the money, I sold my shares, it wasn’t enough, I had to borrow money from the bank, but I was not comfortable borrowing money. But his advice was that whatever it would take to give the children good education, including borrowing, I should do it. That resolved the issue for me : it amounted to transferring of paper investment into intellectual investment which is great. So you need to get people above to mentor you, and get people below for you to mentor.

LESSON 3 Networking You need to develop networking skills

To get to the top, you need to develop great networking skills. The question to ask is how many people can you call successfully for help when you run into rough waters? By consciously cultivating valuable relationships you are building an emotional bank account from which you can withdraw in times of needs. There was a time some people petitioned the Federal Government that Nestle was illegally bringing expatriates to the country without proper immigration papers and other documentation. I had to engage one of my contacts who had contact with the then number two man, General Diya and that gave us the opportunity to explain ourselves better and got us out of trouble. Networking can save you from trouble.

LESSON 4 MONEY AND INVESTMENT Develop a savings culture from your youth

On the advice of elder brother, I started saving from my first salary and this has continued till date. Apart from saving, I also invest particularly in shares. It was the proceeds from shares that I used to take care of my children’s education and the money saved over time has also helped me to retire with comfort.

LESSON 5 FAMILY Maintain work/life balance

You must understand that and strive for balance in your life. Assume you are juggling 5 balls in the air, you name them - work, family, health, friends, & spirit. Work is a rubber ball, if you drop it, it will bounce back. But if you drop any of the other 4 balls - family, health, friends, & spirit, they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered. They will never be the same.

LESSON 6 HEALTH Health is wealth

Health is wealth, you must look after yourself because many people depend on you. Give time to rest, not just working 18, 20 hours a day and bragging about it. You should live a work life balance. Do things in moderation and of course exercise. Sleep, watch what you eat, do exercise and do things in moderation.

LESSON 7 SPIRITUALITY The Lord is my all

Here is the summary: every success you ever achieved was made possible by the grace of God. What you are and the height you attain is through the grace and mercy of God. The race is not for the swiftest. Give Him all the glory and praise.

Chief Olusegun Osunkeye, former managing director and chairman of Nestle Foods Plc. is one of the few individuals in the country who have been able to make it to the pinnacle of their careers and also finished well without scandals. Interestingly, just as one our life lessons guests ( Dotun Sulaiman) has proved, by staying on Nestle for 41 years, Chief Osunkeye, a Chartered Accountant by training, has demonstrated that you can be wealthy and live a good life working for others. Enjoy his notes on the journey.